The Navigator
by Yosashii
Summary: One mans love for the ocean cast him into a life of piracy. OC. AU.


Sid loved the ocean. He wasn't interested in the mythical lore and legends that most of the kids his age would find fascinating and wonderful, though. No, he was more interested in the study of real, solid maps. Even at the age of five, he preferred to look over maps and chart paths in his mind, rather than go out and play with the other children. The ocean always intrigued him, it was a love that never passed with age. He always went out onto the back porch of his mothers home - a home that was in a village on the border between land and the vast ocean - and look over the crystal clear ocean that stretched out before him like an entirely new, great and mysterious world ready to be explored. The bright blue sky that dipped down over the waters, and the clouds would drift off into the distance, free of will. Something that he always wanted to do. Something that he wasn't allowed to do.

Even though the village was a port, allowing ships to dock and restock their items, his father forbade Sid from ever setting sail. His father was known as Captain Stark, but was even more renowned far throughout the world for being a well-decorated naval captain, and for his leadership of his own fleet, the First Battalion - a group that was sent in to collect on the most deadly bounties, that no one dared touch. Stark knew of Sid's love for the ocean, and knew that, at his age, it would only be a curse. For a kid to go out and sail the ocean was absurd, he thought, and he wasn't going to allow it.

His father never diminished Sid's spirits, though, and despite the fact that he knew he would have to wait until he was eighteen until he could finally leave this village and explore the seven seas, he continued to cling to his love for the ocean, and collecting maps. He would become the greatest navigator that the world had ever seen.

Stark loved Sid's undying determination, and decided to help out his son. Being a powerful naval officer, he had access to copies of many maps of the world; and he made sure that Sid would get his hands on him next time he docked at his home village. For his twelfth birthday, his father had bestowed upon him many maps, to the point where he had to get rid of many of his own possessions just to make room. He always kept his maps with him, at least the ones that he'd been studying at the time. He took them to school, he took them to the sports games that his mother took him to, he took them with him to the restaurants, the neighbors, everywhere.

After a year, it seemed as though he'd known everything. Many people of the village wished that he'd just finally give up his passion; he was wasting his life away with all of those maps. It was silly to them. But there was still one thing that always intrigued him. Something that he'd never found out about, no matter how many maps he looked at. It seemed as if the navy didn't have one. The "Grand Line". What was it, exactly? And what was One Piece, rumored to be hidden inside? A student always learns, there is never someone who surpassed that role as the pupil; for even when an entire world is study, a whole knew one opens up, ready to be discovered. He wanted to see this Grand Line he'd learned of; even if it meant giving up on his fathers dream of his son becoming the greatest navigator in the navy. For he had a bigger dream than just that.

He was well into his thirteenth year when it happened. When he was torn away from his life of safety, his life of dreams, and cast into a world of infamy. He stepped out onto the back porch of his home with a smile, as he did every day since the birth of his dream. His smile didn't last long, though. There were dark clouds in the sky; one of those rare occasions. He didn't need someone's help to tell him that a storm might be coming. He knew that one was coming.

But that didn't excuse him from school, no matter how much he begged with his mother. With a pout across his face, he disappeared into his room, lifting up an empty box. He set it onto his desk, shuffling through a pile of maps that lay across it. They were all of a certain part of the world, places where he believed that entrances to the Grand Line lied, but he had yet to figure out where exactly it was, or even what it was. But that was something that he was determined to find out. He set the maps into the box, making sure that they wouldn't get crumpled or folded, and then pushed the box into his backpack, zipping it up. He departed for school.

It was recess. The storm hadn't yet reached the village, so the teacher had decided to allow the kids out into the playground. She needed some time to herself, anyway. Whenever a storm was coming, the kids were out of control. Sid, however, decided to stay in the classroom. He had a magnifying glass in hand, and was looking over a map on his desk, searching for any clues or hints to this "Grand Line".

The Grand Line may not have even been a place that could just be found on a map.. Maybe it was more than that. He'd heard of how Pirate's constantly crossed the Grand Line in search of One Piece, and was known as the "Pirates graveyard". Just then, his magnifying glass fell out of his hand, his eyes were wide as he shuffled through his maps, pulling out a map that showed the Red Line. His father had always told him stories of the demises of great pirates scattered throughout the ocean on the Red Line. He took a pencil, and then started marking places that he remembered his father telling him about. A scatter plot, in a way. He then traced a line that cut through all those points, it was perpendicular to the Red Line. That had to be it... Red Line, Grand Line, separating the four oceans. It fit perfectly. Why wasn't the Grand Line already listed on maps, though? Was it to protect the people?

A hand slapped down against his desk, onto the map that lay before him. The pencil that he'd used went flying from his hand with his surprise, and he slowly lifted his head to see a group of three other kids. The leader, the one who'd slapped down his hand to scare Sid, was known as Mark. Mark wasn't the type of kid that the others liked hanging around with; he was a bully that loved dares.

"Still playing with maps, Sid?" He asked, a smirk slowly spreading like butter across his lips. Sid lifted his gaze, which was now more of a glare, up towards Mark.

"What does it matter to you?" He retorted. Usually the kids took Mark's remarks without a word, but Sid, being the son of a naval captain, was taught never to back down.

"You're such a nerd, you know that? You need to get out and do something, a stupid navigators dream will never come true." He said, knocking aside Sid's map and sending it to the floor.

Sid stood to his feet, the chair sliding back across the floor. He placed his hands down against the table, leaning forward across it to bore into Mark's pupils. "How about I start by beating you to a pulp?"

Mark laughed, as did the two behind him. "You have the guts that your dad does, all right. To bad he's probably already dead, what with the rise of Blackbeard and all."

Sid leaped across the desk and grabbed Mark by the collar of his shirt, pushing him back against the wall. A growl escaped from the depths of his throat, but Mark only laughed again. The two that had been following him grabbed Sid by his shoulders, pulling him back. Despite his best efforts, Sid wouldn't be able to break free, or even win in a three against one fight.

Mark stepped forward, but instead of taking a shot at the restrained Sid, he lifted up his backpack, pulling out of it a box. He opened it up, revealing most of Sid's prized maps. "Put it back!" He shouted.

Mark looked up at Sid, and then smirked. "I see.. So you need these maps, do you?" He asked, and then put the lid back onto the box. "Meet me at the docks after school. You'll have to do a little.. dare." He said, and then slipped out of the room. The two pushed Sid back towards the chair, and he tripped over it, falling onto his back. He was soon alone in the room, with a pain in his chest. He needed those maps.. No matter how much he knew about them, he needed to learn more about the Grand Line. He slowly turned his head to the side. They hadn't taken the map that fell, which was a good thing. He slowly lifted it up, looking it over; it was the most important. He slowly, carefully folded it up, enough to where it would fit into his pocket. He then pushed himself up. He couldn't go after them.. he had to do whatever dare that Mark had in store.

School had let out, and the kids inside flooded out through the front door, pouring out into the streets. The dark clouds were growing closer, and they all wanted to be home in case a torrent was about to begin. But Sid had a different destination; to the docks.

The waters were no longer as calm as they were this morning, they were getting rougher. Waves crashed into the banks beneath the wooden docks, sending droplets of water scattering into the air and coating the edges of the lands. The ships in the water bobbed and weaved, but that was the worst of the movements. One of the ships stood out among all of the others. The ship had black sails that towered among the village; no one dared to go near it. The skull and crossbones on the highest sail served as a threat to the people.

"They docked here this morning." Mark said, looking up at the ship. "Probably to escape the storm. But they're all out in bar, getting drunk." He turned to look at Sid, who gulped softly at the sight of the ship. From his fathers stories.. He shouldn't be anywhere near this cursed ship. But Mark pushed a hand against his back, sending him stumbling onto the docks, his footsteps echoing over the growing winds. "Go on." He said. "Bring back treasure." Mark smirked. No one would be foolish enough to do something like this, and that's what made it such a good dare.

Sid looked back at the three, who were blocking his way off of the docks. One of them was holding his box of maps. He needed it.. Slowly, he turned around, and then began to push his way across the long pier, towards the end, where his future lied. A narrow bridge tied down at the end of the landing served as a walkway onto the pirate's ship, which he walked across, careful not to trip and fall off the sides. He then felt his foot hitting the ship.

It was unlike any experience he ever felt; the first time he stepped on a ship. The feeling of his body weaving around as the ship bobbed, the feeling of his body becoming one with the sea. It was amazing, and he never wanted it to go away. How he ever lived without this "sea-legs" feeling, he didn't know. But now that he'd experienced it, he didn't want to go back.

The fact that this was a pirate's ship, though, caused him to snap out of his thoughts. He moved towards the hatch that led below decks, but it was locked. Of course, who would leave their home without locking it? Only a fool. He looked around for anything that he could use to get it open. Empty barrels were scattered along the decks, and he moved and dragged one to the hatch. He lifted it up with all of his strength, then brought it down onto the lock, causing it to shatter. He then pushed the barrel to the side, letting it fall and roll to some other place, as he grabbed the handle, pulling the hatch open and climbing down a ladder that led inside.

The feeling inside of a ship had an even greater effect on him. It was comforting, even though he could hear the waves crashing against the side of the wood, threatening to break into it, he felt safe in this shell, safe in the sea. But he shook his head, beginning to explore. There had to be some collected treasure down here somewhere. The smell that entered his nose, though, was mostly week old rum. The barrels down here were full of it.

He came to a stop as he spotted it. A large chest at the back of the ship, just waiting to be opened and looted. His eyes sparkled at the sight of it, and he made his way closer, getting down on his knees. He looked at the lock on it. It didn't seem like it could be broken, the only hope he had was picking the lock. He looked around, and picked up a few loose tools back near the ladder, moving to start work on the lock. He bit down on his tongue, trying to figure it all out. Lock picking was so confusing.. Breaking them was so much easier.

He heard loud knocks against the wood above him, which knocked him off focus for a moment. Maybe Mark and his gang had come to check up on him. Maybe the storm was starting. He looked back down on the lock, and the frowned, pulling out the tools and just starting to beat them against the lock. If he kept at it enough, he'd get it open.

"What do ya think yer doin'?" A voice rang from behind him. He jumped up from his position, the tools falling from his hands as he whirled his body around, looking at the man that had snuck up on him.

He was a tall man, about six feet in height (Sid was only around five). He wore tattered clothes that needed to be washed, and a jacket around his body, black in color. Little known to Sid, it showed that he was the captain of this ship. He had a bushy beard that came down to just above his chest, and curly hair that hung down passed his shoulders. An eye patch covered one of his eyes. Across his face was a scar, starting at the middle of his forehead, and running diagonally down to his left, covered eye, and ending at his cheek. He lifted a massive hand, moving it and grabbing Sid's shoulder.

"Tryin' to steal from me treasure?" He asked in a threatening tone, his other hand slipping into Sid's pockets. He pulled out the map that showed the location of the Grand Line, discovered by Sid. He didn't unfold it, but he knew that it was a map. "I'll just be takin' this from ya." He then grabbed hold of Sid's collar, dragging him through the ship, and then throwing him down against the floor. He stepped back, and then slammed the cell door shut, locking him inside.

The captain turned away, and Sid jumped up, grabbing hold of the bars of the cell. "Wait! I didn't take anything! You can't lock me here!" He shouted, but the captain had already left the prison room, deep below the decks. It was dark around here, and beneath the water. The prisoners would be the first to drown if the ship flooded. Sid slowly pushed back from the bars, falling to the floor again, leaning back against the wall. For some reason, he wasn't panicking.. He was locked up by pirates, but part of him felt happy. Even if he wouldn't see it, he'd be sailing across the sea..

The storm was strong, and the rain was stronger. The currents were out of control, and constantly pushed the ship back and forth. For the entire day the storm had gone on, and if the sun were out, then it would be setting behind the ocean at this time. Chaos erupted above deck, the pirate crew were running back and forth, trying to keep the boat from flipping, trying to steer them to safety. They should've waited longer before setting sail, but they didn't think the storm would have stretched so far. The navigator had guided them to the middle of no where. He believed there was an island at this place, but now they were just lost, unable to find out where they were on any map.

The storm had soon calmed down, and it was only a light drizzle of rain now, pittering and pattering across the deck. The pirates were collapsed across the ship, it had been one tough storm to get through. But the navigator still had no idea as to where they were. The compass had been lost in the chaos, and he had no idea how to find his way without one. The captain stood near the bow of the ship, looking down at the tired crew members. His navigator was a fool. Slowly, he pulled from his pocket the map that the boy had held in his pocket. He opened it up. For a boy like him to discover the Grand Line, it seemed impossible.

Sid was asleep when the door to the cell he was in came open, the metal grinding against one another. The sound caused him to stir, and as he opened his eyes, two of the pirates came in and grabbed him by the shoulders, lifting him up and dragging him up to the deck.

He stood before the captain, who looked down at him with a curious eye. The two pirates that had brought him up were at his side, to make sure he didn't try to attack or flee. Sid looked nervously up at him.

"Lead us to land." The captain suddenly spoke. The two pirates were about to interject, but one movement of the captains hand had silenced them. A second later, the one on the left couldn't hold back.

"You're asking a kid to lead us to land! Have you lost your mind, captain?" He shouted, but quickly reared back, like a mouse trapped in a corner, as the captain stood in front of him, glaring down into his eyes. He rose up a hand, pushing him away. He almost fell off the side of the ship, but managed to catch himself, and then quickly left the captain alone.

"Lead us to land, and I'll let ya be a part of the crew. We need new supplies, most of them been ruined by the storm." He continued. Sid slowly looked down. To join a pirate crew was like taking a knife to his fathers back. But he couldn't go back to land now, not when he had this feeling of being on a ship inside of his chest. He then turned his back to the captain, and lifted a hand. He licked his thumb, and rose it into the air to see which direction the wind was heading, if there was any at all. His eyes scanned the skies above, looking through the visible stars. There was a breeze heading west.. And from the positions of the stars, he recognized this place from his studies.

"There's an island due west." He said, then turned to the captain, who quirked a brow. No usage of a map or compass at all. It was then that he started to doubt the boys skills, as did the pirate still next to him. The crewman was about to speak out against him and call him insane, until a voice interjected.

"Land ho!" cried the lookout, pointing in the exact direction that Sid had pointed. The captain looked off to the west, and the tips of an island were beginning to sprout over the horizon. If the captain was impressed, he did a good job of not showing it. "What's your name?" He asked, all of a sudden.

"..Sid." He replied, looking back to the captain.

He motioned off the crewman nearby, to gather all of the others. It wasn't long before the entire crew was together above deck, with barrels to sit down on and use as chairs. They passed around mugs of rum, and the captain stood in the middle, raising his glass slowly.

"Welcome to the crew, Navigator Sid!" He shouted, and all of the other pirates erupted in loud roars and began to chug their glasses. Sid looked around the group slowly, and then lifted up his glass, taking a small sip. At first, he wanted to spit it out.. But then the taste settled in. He threw back the glass, beginning to down the rum inside. Being a pirate couldn't be so bad.


End file.
